Q&A for How to Breed Turkeys

Yes, as long as they are safe from predators a hen will only nest where she feels safe. Leave her where she is unless she is unsafe.

You should keep the eggs in an incubator. If there are two chicks in one egg, you may need to help the chicks out. Two chicks on one egg is rare, but it can happen, like humans getting twins.

Turkeys are mature at 6 months old, or when the hen starts laying eggs.

The tom will stand on top of the hen and move his wings around a bit. This means they are mating.

Pen up some toms. Maybe pen up two to three toms. They should mate with the hens fairly quick. Keep one hen per pen, then you should have more males and females.

It depends on whether the eggs come from different breeders or not. If all eggs came from the same breeder, it is best not to let the tom breed with the hens. This is because it is classified as in-breeding. In-breeding can lead to unhealthy chicks that have a low immune system and come with many problems. It's best for you to purchase some more hens or toms instead of in-breeding the hatch.

If he is a matured turkey, he will. Turkeys mature at about 6 months.

You'd need to check with the airline first. It would be easiest to ship the eggs to your destination,as fragile, live cargo.

I do 5 hens to a tom in a cubicle and rotate the tom weekly. I have 2 sets of toms, each set stays with the hens 1 week at a time.

Yes, touching the eggs will do nothing to the eggs, provided your hands are clean. However, only touch them if truly necessary as it is best to not interfere in any way.

It is a good idea to give a free-range bird a little bit of food such as pellets to prevent the bird from becoming too thin, but if there is enough for the bird to forage on you do not have to. A male turkey will usually be bigger than the hens and after so long will grow a beard, but hens can grow a beard sometimes. Also, a gobbler has a larger head and body build, while a hen has a smaller head and a sleeker build than the male. The gobbler (male) makes a gobbling noise when older and a hen makes more of a longer, drawn out noise.

The eggs that have been laid are not going to be fertilized but you can put a gobbler in their to fertilize the eggs they have not laid yet. Keep an eye on them the first day you introduce the tom to make sure they get along.

You can remove the eggs every day or so, and if a male turkey is sitting on eggs, either it is not a male or something is wrong with him. So it is not normal.

Birds don't become pregnant, they lay eggs instead. Only mammals can become pregnant.

Usually they lose weight if they aren't getting enough food or they are stressed, but it could also be a symptom of illness. It would be best to check with a vet if you can.

If she is sitting on the floor near the tom with her wings slightly out, she is ready to mate. She may also be sitting because she is resting or sick.

Turkey eggs pip at 21-28 days. If it goes farther than that, they probably won't live.

You should never force an animal to mate. Follow the instructions listed in the article above for how to successfully breed turkeys.

She may not be broody -- this is normal, as most non-broody turkey hens will lay eggs then go on with their day.

One way is to put him in a small enclosure with the hens, with no places for any of them to hide. Put some treats in a pile - they will all want them, and have to all go to that pile, together, to get to them. This forces close contact, which will hopefully lead to more. Another way is to put him in a small enclosure with only one of the hens, with no places for either of them to hide. Then, put the pile of treats in there and sprinkle some food or treats onto the back or lower neck of the hen while she is eating. The male will have to put himself in the mating position to get to the treats on her lower neck.

Yes, that is correct. To have a fertile egg, the hen must first mate with a male.

The breeding season for turkeys starts in late March and early April when toms begin gobbling and displaying for the hens. Turkeys are considered polygamous breeders, as toms will mate with many hens and hens may breed with more than one tom.

A turkey hen can lay eggs without a tom, but they will not be fertile. There is no way to tell whether a hen has been bred or not, except for candling her eggs as soon as possible after being put in with the tom.

Yes. They do prefer their own breed but they will still mate any breed, even a chicken if you're not careful!

Create a nice nesting area for them. Get them a tom each, not one to share. But they might need another half a year to start laying, that is to be expected.

Not really, although the hen prefers a tom, and she will call for one a lot. She will need one for the eggs to be fertilized.

Yes, they need more time together. On the second year usually, they lay eggs, and try to hatch them.

Yes, they are mating. Sometimes you get hens that are the exact same size as the males, and strut, and mate on the toms. I have this all the time, they still lay eggs.

He is a very good father. He will protect his hen and poults from any danger. No, do not take him out.